The Hobbits' Cooking Guild

[Morwenna]

OK, it's time to bump this thread again with another holiday goodie!

A year ago, for Beltaine/May Day over at church, I baked some cookies using ingredients suggested on a few websites, and to do so I found a recipe at home that I tweaked a little bit, and they went over well, so I decided to do it again this year. I didn't post it before now because I wanted to tweak it some more first. So this is finally what I came up with.

Beltaine Oatmeal Cookies

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp honey
3 cups oats
1/2 to 1 cup dried cherries

Combine flour, baking soda, nutmeg, salt. Beat together butter, sugars, eggs, vanilla, honey. Gradually add flour mixture, mix. Stir in oats and cherries.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 7-8 min. for chewy [read soft] or 9-10 min. for crisp [actually, just chewy enough and almost crisp]. That's for drop cookies.
Or make into bar cookies in a 15"x10" pan for 18-22 min.

Last year I used less nutmeg, I was just guessing at the honey, and we turned out not to have any dried cherries at the time (we never run out of dried fruit!) so I made the cookies without, and pressed candied cherries into the top while they were still hot and soft enough. But they're better this way.

I made these this year with a half cup cherries; hubby thinks it would be better with a full cup. To each his taste.

[heliona]

They sound really yummy, Morwenna.

I've discovered no-churn ice cream (I don't have an ice cream maker, nor the room for one). I was looking for recipes to use up my mint that was growing furiously, and whilst investigating sorbet recipes (I made a mint sorbet - it was delicious) I came across no-churn ice cream.

Intrigued, I thought I'd give it a go. As I had some bananas, a recipe for banana and salted caramel swirl ice cream appealed to me instantly.

Here's the recipe (courtesy of Citrus and Candy:

Ingredients

For the salted caramel sauce

100g caster sugar
125ml pure cream or light thickened cream (35% fat content) [for the Brits, double cream is fine]
15g butter
1/2 tsp sea salt flakes (adjust to your personal taste)

For the ice cream

2 super ripe bananas
250ml pure cream [again, I used double cream]
195g sweetened condensed milk (half a 395g tin)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Method:

For the caramel

In a heavy-based pan over low heat, add the sugar in an even layer then leave to melt into an amber-coloured caramel. Meanwhile, heat up the cream gently in a separate pan and keep warm.
Keep a watchful eye because it doesn’t take long for caramel to burn. You want to cook this until it’s a darkish brown golden colour. Too light and it’ll just be a sickly sweet flavoured caramel. You want to take this a few notches before the burnt stage to have a lovely sweet smokey caramel with the slightest hint of bitterness.
When it’s ready, take it off the heat and add the warmed cream. It’ll bubble up furiously so be careful. When that settles, stir through the butter.
The caramel may seize and harden but no worries. Just stick it back over the low heat and stir gently until everything has melted into a luscious sauce. Stir through the salt to taste then allow to cool completely.

[I need to add here that I ended up with one lump in middle of all the sauce that turned out to be where most of the salt was. (I hadn't used flakes as I couldn't find any.) So I would suggest keeping the caramel on a low heat whilst you stir the salt in for a good while to ensure that it all dissolves instead of just binding in one great big lump!]

For the ice cream

In a food processor or by hand, mash up the bananas until smooth (feel free to leave it more chunky if you wish).
Meanwhile whisk the cream until soft peaks then gently fold through the condensed milk and vanilla until mostly combined. Fold through the banana mash.
Scrape half the batter into a loaf tin (or any container you wish - I used an old ice cream container). Dollop in the cooled caramel then swirl through the ice cream mixture. Add the remaining ice cream over the top then swirl through more caramel to taste. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze overnight.

[You need to make sure the that plastic wrap is on top of the ice cream, leaving as little air gaps as possible as it stops crystalisation. My caramel was a bit thick, which made swirling it a wee bit difficult, but there was still the desired effect. I think I whipped my cream for slightly too long, but the ice cream still came out tasting lovely.]

Here's the finished result with some warmed up waffles.

[Morwenna]

Wow! That sounds great! (Salted caramel... mmmm... )

Somewhere in my mother's recipes are two ice-tray ice cream recipes, one for maple and one for strawberry. We never had an ice-cream maker either. We had the maple one way back when I was very little (or maybe before I was born), and the strawberry one came when I was around 12; we loved them both and had them several times every summer. I've never tried making them myself; I'd have to find them first!

[Hwesta]

Hello Everyone!
I posted a recipe over on Middle-Aged Crazy and Morwenna invited me to post it here as well. I hope you all enjoy it.
Hwesta

Chicken Soup with Too Much Garlic

1 chicken, cut up (or use less chicken for a smaller batch)
Chicken broth (I use Swanson's) or water or chicken broth and water to cover
I carrot, grated
1-3 stalks celery (depending on how much you like celery), finely chopped
1 - 2 large onions, chopped (depending on how much onion you like)
Pinch of caraway seeds
1 - 5 bulbs garlic (depends on how much you like garlic)
1-3 tsp olive oil
1 tsp - 1 T Sea salt or to taste
Lots of Fresh ground pepper or to taste (I sometimes use lemon pepper for part of the pepper)
2 - 3 cups of fresh button mushrooms, chopped.(optional)
Small bunch of fresh Italian parsley, the flat leaved kind (optional)
Pasta, any shape (optional)

Put chicken pieces in a large stock pot and add chicken broth or water or broth and water to cover. Add carrot, celery, onion, caraway seeds, salt and pepper. Finely mince the cloves of one bulb of garlic and add to the pot. Bring to a low boil, cover and reduce heat to a simmer.
Skim off the froth if you have the time and the inclination.
Let cook, stirring occasionally until the meat is very tender and falling off the bones. (I don't know how long this takes! A couple of hours, maybe?)
Remove the chicken and bones to a large bowl. Set aside to cool.
Finely mince the cloves from a second bulb of garlic and add to soup.
Add mushrooms if using.
Return to a simmer.
Take 1 - 3 remaining bulbs of garlic and roast them. Set oven to 375 degrees. Line a cookie sheet (one with rims around the edge) with aluminum foil. Take each garlic bulb and slice off the top. Set on cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Use the aluminum foil to make a sort of tent above the garlic. Roast in oven for 45 minutes. Allow to cool.
Carefully debone the chicken. Chop up the chicken into bite sized pieces and add back to the simmering broth.
Add the chopped parsley, if desired.
Squeeze the roasted garlic out of the individual cloves of garlic and add to soup. Continue to simmer for 20 minutes or so. Add pasta in the last 10 - 12 minutes.
Check to see if additional salt or pepper is needed.
Serve it forth!

The quick version is to start with a rotisserie chicken. Bone the chicken and add to the broth that you have prepared.
If you are concerned about the fat content (and aren't we all?) allow the soup to cool and refrigerate. The next day you will be able to remove the layer of chicken fat that solidifies on top.

[Morwenna]

Hubby did something new a couple weeks ago and I'm finally getting around to posting it...

Cabbage & Potato Soup

1 lb. bacon, chopped & rendered
1 lb. smoked sausage, sliced
2 qts chicken stock
Onion, chopped & sweated, as much as desired (also garlic)
Seasonings: cumin, paprika, cayenne, to taste
I small head or 1/2 large head of cabbage, chopped in rough cubes
Simmer for awhile, then add:
Potatoes, quartered, skin on, as many as you like
Cook until potatoes are done.

This lasted the two of us the better part of a week; I was taking it to work for lunches as well. The older it gets the better!

[Arassuil]

I have to say that the baked beans that Jamie Oliver makes are the best I've had!
This recipe is from his book 15 Minute Meals

Smoky Baked Beans

• 2 x 400g tins of mixed beans
• 350g passata
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons tomato ketchup
• 2 Tablespoon HP sauce (Brown BBQish ketchup)
• 1 teaspoon runny honey
• 1 heaped teaspoon English mustard, plus extra to serve
• 40g Cheddar cheese

1. Pre-heat oven to 240°C/475°F/gas 9.
2. Drain and rinse the beans and put into a medium frying pan with the 2 Tablespoons of oil to fry and crisp up.
3. Stir the remaining ingredients (except the cheese) in a bowl.
4. Add the mixed ingredients to the beans pan and bring to the boil.
5. Grate the Cheddar Cheese over the top of the beans, and place in the oven until golden and sizzling.

[Morwenna]

I'm bumping this thread to ask:

Anyone have any holiday recipes to share?

[Morwenna]

Oh come on--doesn't ANYBODY have any holiday recipes to share???

[Morwenna]

Bumping as usual...

This isn't even a holiday, but I throw this idea out to anyone. Hubby makes a killer stuffing every Thanksgiving (or around that time), and for the last few years he's put the bulk of it into a loaf pan and baked it along with the stuffed bird. We eat what's in the bird while we have the bird, but the loaf gets put into the freezer for when we have turkey during the year. He calls it "bird-day cake." Anyway, sometimes we get a deal on boneless turkey breasts, and there's the stuffing already made. A slice or two of stuffing, a couple slices meat, and a little canned gravy = dinner! (Well, add veggies as desired...) We're doing that right now.

[Morwenna]

Bumping Again For The Holiday Season!! Anyone have anything to share??

[Arassuil]

It's not a holiday, but it is cool here, so a nice roast may be in order.
Do you prefer hot roast beef or cold roast beef?

[Morwenna]

Hot, of course. Are you speaking of pot roast or oven roast? (Both are yummy!) Pot: chuck roast or shoulder roast. Oven: standing rib roast!

Anyway, lately hubby's been making grilled cheese, tomato & bacon sandwiches, which is a quickie derivative of the open-faced sandwiches my mother used to make a zillion times every summer. It ran as follows:

Broiled Tomato, Cheese & Bacon Sandwiches

Toast bread on one side; slather the other side with mayo or dressing. Upon this, stack in order: tomato slices, cheese slice, strips of partially cooked bacon (the strip kind like we have in the US). Broil till cheese melts. Enjoy!

[Arassuil]

Hi Morwenna! Those sangers look yummerz! I may have to try this!

As for my roast, I get a rib filet from the butcher and roast it, then cut it up and use it with various dips.

[Morwenna]

I never thought of dips for beef, though I know of their existence. What do you use?

[Arassuil]

I never thought of dips for beef, though I know of their existence. What do you use?

I usually make some Garlic Aioli and some Mustard Aioli using a really good quality mayonaise for both.

[Morwenna]

Oh, those do sound good. I suppose one could use them for a sandwich condiment just as well? Think of the classy burgers those would make!

[Morwenna]

BUMP!!

It's been almost 3 years since there's been any activity here (mostly mine) so I'm calling out to all you cooks and would-be cooks and appreciators of cooks: come share your recipes and techniques! Come ask questions! Isn't it really all about the food??

[Herger]

I like food. I'm not a particularly skilled cook, but I definitely like food.

[Morwenna]

Same here, actually. I can cook but I married a man who always loved to cook, and when he first moved in with me he was getting home from work over an hour before me and I would come home to hot food on the table. Did you think I would give that up?? And my mother was a very good cook too, in fact I compare her cooking and my husband's a lot; too bad they never got the chance to know each other better because they'd have had a great time swapping techniques.

I really need to get back into cooking, though. I do bake every so often (nowhere nearly as often as my mother used to), but I really need to start making actual main dishes again. It's been way too long.

[Herger]

I cook like, "Hmm, what's in the fridge?" throw everything into a crockpot, frying pan, or baking dish

My guy is like, "Let's find a recipe, shop for the appropriate ingredients, and then follow said recipe."

And I just sit there like, "What's a recipe?"

[Morwenna]

Hubby's like you; he cooks by the seat of his pants. He learns by experience, and from TV guru Alton Brown, and from a few websites. He says cooking is an art, baking is a science. And both of us bake.

Of course now he's recovering from a broken arm (his dominant hand) so I have to do the cooking! If it's something he knows how better than I do, he guides me through it. Many things we make now are a collaboration, like today's pasta sauce. I'm the one who made Easter dinner, though most of it was just heating things up. So I'm getting the practice I was musing about before. He actually broke his arm in February, but he was in rehab for several weeks so I was making the easiest possible meals, as I was when he first came home. But little by little I'm getting used to it again.

When it comes to recipes, though, I'm addicted to reading them! I have so many cookbooks (mostly secondhand) it isn't funny. And I keep coming across things I'd like to try. I even sometimes find something hubby makes, only with a twist he doesn't use, and tell him about it; sometimes he even goes along with it.

[Herger]

Sorry to hear about your Hubby's arm. Hope the isolation is at least giving him a nice long time to rest and heal up! (assuming you are isolated to some degree?)

I do refer to recipes on occasion, but unless it really matters I tend not to follow them too closely. I like making coleslaw just randomly, I don't really measure anything, just eyeball it all. But then when it comes to something like, say, cheesecake, I will usually be very careful in measuring and ingredients. Anything too detailed wears me out, though. I am due for more cheesecake, though... maybe I'll set aside some energy for that today

Do you have any favorite recipes or dishes you've made or had?

[Morwenna]

Some of the stuff I've made I've posted before in this thread, along with some of hubby's things. One thing he's fond of making, though, is skillet supper, which is literally things thrown together, usually some kind of meat and veggie combo with rice. His pet name for such a dish is "glop," sort of indicating the sound a spoonful of it makes when hitting the plate. Part of the goodness of things like this is the seasoning. He's very good at that.

But of course when it comes to baking, recipes are a necessity. As he often says, cooking is an art, baking is a science. In general cooking, anything goes, the sky's the limit. But in baking, you have to start with a tried and true formula before you can tweak it.

But what do I love to eat? FISH!! Which we don't have at home because he doesn't like it (the only seafood he'll eat is tuna salad and fried clam strips). And I'm never quite in the mood to make something like that for myself alone. Though many moons ago when I was single, I sometimes would get a fillet of something, put butter & herbs on it and stick it under the broiler. I also used to make fish chowder once in a while, also corn chowder (much as I love clam chowder, I never actually made it). I used to make tuna noodle casseroles too, and I'd often tweak the recipe with different extra ingredients. But except for the corn chowder, those are all things he doesn't want to eat. He's a confirmed meat eater, but unless it's totally lean or else ground up so I can't tell the difference, I'd just rather have the meat flavor. The freezer is full of stuff he bought because he said I thought it was a good idea when he suggested it but then I never wanted to eat it once it was home. He's half right.

[Herger]

Oooh Fish! I do love a good fish. I even enjoy a passable fish. While I rarely go through the bother of cooking a good fillet, I have found I do really like kippers as an alternative to tuna. Never cold, so I guess less an alternative and just... different. I'll fry it up with veggies or make fish cakes, or once I even tried making breaded fish 'sticks' with it but it doesn't hold together very well so... so it was pretty messy. But still very tasty, I can't quite describe the flavor, but it is markedly more fishy than tuna, or tilapia, or similar white fishes. So it sort of hits the spot for salmon, I suppose. Except for smoked salmon, which is another great fish I don't have to spend a lot of time preparing to enjoy

[Morwenna]

Aah, salmon. I adore the stuff. One of the things I miss right now during the lockdown is the cafeteria in the building next door to my workplace, which most days had some kind of fish among the choices, and more often than not that fish was salmon, and I would cheerfully eat it. Only trouble is, they got their hot dishes from their main restaurant about a mile away, and reheated it if necessary when it arrived, so sometimes the fish was overdone. Dried out is not good. But it was at least there! (I can't wait for them to reopen; I'm tired of bringing stuff from home or putting in with office mates for a delivery.)

Underdone is not good either. There's a very fine line, and when I was making fish fillets for myself I would watch the progress through the window in the oven door with the oven light on. But some people like it less done than I do, especially the way some of the chi-chi places make it. Nearly 4 years ago hubby and I treated his brother & SIL to dinner at a top-rated and very expensive steak house (he had just gotten his Social Security disability with retroactive), and of course I had the salmon. Tasty, but a bit underdone for me. But that same weekend he and I went to a much less high-toned restaurant in another town (which I found out later was also highly rated) and I had their salmon, and it was the best I'd ever had! Go figure.

[Morwenna]

Bumping for another recipe, sort of:

Sausage, Peppers & Onion Stir Fry, with pasta

This is something we've done fairly often but not for a long time. Within the last few weeks we latched onto a sale on Italian sausage, and some quick-sale green bell peppers, so it was time.

For 2 or 3 people:
4 links of Italian sausage (we used 2 each of hot & sweet), sliced
2 onions, rough chopped
2 bell peppers, cut into half-strips
Sautee it all in olive oil (hubby used the wok).
Add about 1/2 pkg cooked pasta (we used penne)
Sautee some more, then add seasonings to taste.
We used basil, garlic powder, oregano, cumin, and red pepper flakes.
Sprinkle individual servings, if desired, with grated cheese; we used Parmesan.

It actually made 3 generous servings (it could have made 4 smaller ones, but we have hearty appetites). The third serving I brought with me for lunch today.

[Deumeawyn]

Bumping for another recipe, sort of:

Sausage, Peppers & Onion Stir Fry, with pasta

This is something we've done fairly often but not for a long time. Within the last few weeks we latched onto a sale on Italian sausage, and some quick-sale green bell peppers, so it was time.

For 2 or 3 people:
4 links of Italian sausage (we used 2 each of hot & sweet), sliced
2 onions, rough chopped
2 bell peppers, cut into half-strips
Sautee it all in olive oil (hubby used the wok).
Add about 1/2 pkg cooked pasta (we used penne)
Sautee some more, then add seasonings to taste.
We used basil, garlic powder, oregano, cumin, and red pepper flakes.
Sprinkle individual servings, if desired, with grated cheese; we used Parmesan.

It actually made 3 generous servings (it could have made 4 smaller ones, but we have hearty appetites). The third serving I brought with me for lunch today.

Oh Yum! I think I will try this with the sweet pork and fennel Italian sausage I get at my butcher! The portions are perfect as I can have leftovers for lunch!

[Morwenna]

I trust it came out well. I love the sound of your sausage!

We used the same formula last week only instead of putting pasta in it, we put the sausage & veggie mixture into grinder rolls.

[Deumeawyn]

It was! I just finished the last of it for lunch today so I'm a bit over it, but will definitely make that again!

Tonight I make fried rice using a recipe I get from Nat's What I Reckon on youtube. He is so funny but he does swear a lot.

Fried Rice Recipe

• 4 Cups cooked brown or white rice (about 1½ cups uncooked rice)
• 1 Carrot
• 1 Cup Frozen Peas
• 4 French Shallots
• 2 Red Chilies
• 3 Spring Onions
• Many Cloves of Garlic (you decide how many)
• 2 Tbsp Oyster Sauce
• 1 Tbsp Soy Sauce
• 1 tsp Sesame Oil
• 2 Eggs
• 250g Speck (good thick bacon works)
• Coriander (optional)

Wash Rice in a strainer under cold tap water (important – keeps rice from sticking when cooked)
Put rice in pot of cold water and bring it up to boil. Once boiling, turn off heat and let cool on stove.
Put cooked rice in a bowl to further cool it down and put in fridge for a couple hours.
Chop the speck into small chunks and put aside.
Chop all the vegetables up except the spring onion and put in bowl and mix up and set aside.
Put the eggs in a small bowl and whisk them (scramble).
Add 2 tsp of Sesame Oil to a small frypan and lightly cook the eggs (less than a minute) and set aside in their bowl.
In a bigger frypan, add 2 tablespoons of Sesame Oil and put on high heat.
While pan is heating, get rice from fridge.
When pan is hot, add speck. When speck starts to cook and is slightly browning, dump the bowl of chopped vegetables along with the frozen peas into the pan.
Note: Use a non-metal spatula or spoon to stir the pan. (Wood works best, or high-heat silicon, just don’t use metal. Trust me on this)
Add eggs and stir in
Add rice and stir in.
Add the Oyster Sauce and Soy Sauce. (if you prefer less salty food, use salt reduced soy or even les regular)
Stir and cook for 4-5 minutes until the rice is hot again then turn off heat and let sit.
Chop Spring onions and stir into pan and serve.
Add coriander and an extra drizzle of Sesame Oil on top if desired.

If you want to watch Nat's video, here it is (language warning).

[Morwenna]

Wow, that sounds like a lot of work, but it does sound delicious. I'm very fond of fried rice but we never tried making it ourselves. I should print this out.

This is HOT weather and we really don't feel like turning on the stove if we don't have to, so suppers lately have been picnic-style.